Year 13 2023/2024 - General support thread

[Rollergirl11]

It’s now the time for our young adults to sit their final year at sixth form/college. Everyone is welcome!

It’s weird, I think I’ve changed my Username but it still says StColumb here.

Anyway, I’ve had a small break and only read the book threads and in fact loads of 📚.

DS1 finally got his ucas form in just before Christmas and today got his first offer from Manchester, it’s lower than expected which is nice. This was the first time he has initiated a hug in forever. He is working on his NEA for history which is in a space I have some knowledge of so he asked me to read through what he has so
far.

DS and his friends are planning on going inter railing after the exams are finished.
He's back at sixth form on Thursday so making the most of the last few days of time off to finish first draft of his NEA and revision for exams.

I offered DS1 and DS2 free reign for a boys holiday of my family’s house in Turkey before we arrive but they turned it down so we’ve booked our tickets for 3 weeks and will go and see some parts we haven’t before. We are taking DS3 out of school a little early so go mid July and come back the weekend before first set of results (GCSEs and A Levels here too).

We've booked a holiday for July. Dd(15) is on a school trip the first week of the holidays and then we go. Not sure if ds will do a holiday with friends - he has friends, lovely ones, but they are shit at planning anything!

Last day of the holidays here.

DD has various plans for holidays - she and a friend are going to Barcelona for a short break at the end of June/beginning of July and then another friend has a family house in Mull although don’t know when that trip will be. Would like to book a holiday in Northumberland mid July

My son is having a short break with a friend in the South of France in April to break up the revision between Easter and the exams starting. He is then off on a caravan holiday in Norfolk with a group of friends in early July. He is also planning a trip to Italy for 10-14 days in late August/early September tbd based on start dates for his eventual firm and insurance offer.

We are also planning a week in a cottage close to where he ends up (won’t book until after exam results) to both spend some quality time together but also to give him a boot camp on how to shop/cook/live independently. I think it will be easier to see him off after a week together rather than a normal week at home.

@StColumbofNavron awww @ DS initiating a hug 😊

I’ve just booked a Far East trip for end June/July, very excited. DS and DD coming, bit of a tight squeeze as DD goes away to Greece with friends 2 days later. DS has another couple of trips planned with friends to European cities but that works around our trip so all good.

The end of state school for both of them - by which I mean enduring a 6 week window for holidays from end of July every year - feels like a massive weight is being lifted. Although appreciating that Easter holidays with them still impossible until they both finish uni by which time I don’t think they will want to be coming with us!

Happy New Year everyone! Can't believe we are about to embark on the last full term before the exams. It only seems like 5 mins since GCSEs.
No holidays planned here yet. We had thought to go somewhere as soon as the exams finish, but it now looks like my older DS will be having some surgery around that time. Nothing major, but he'll need me around to look after him for a bit, hence why it's being scheduled for the end of the university year for him. Then I'm organising quite a big sports event towards the end of July so need to be around for that, so it doesn't leave much time to fit in a family holiday before results and start of University. If DS2 goes to his currently favoured place it's in Scotland so there won't be a lot of time after results before he goes. DH and I may go away in September, once the boys are both away, but I am hoping we'll get one more family holiday, just not sure when or where now. (Both boys happy enough to come as long as I'm paying!)

Happy New Year all! DS is not back to college until Monday so he's still feeling pretty chill, he has at least now started his homework! Hopefully he will get the results of his December exams when he goes back. His mocks are after Feb half term which I'm sure will come around quickly.

Found the official exam dates on the college website and I think I am wrong about the clash so phew! Seems like his exams are mainly after summer half term. They also mainly seem to be 1hr30 or 2hrs which seems strange to me as I remember doing 3hr exams for my A levels (a long time ago!) It means he has more papers though. I guess it works out the same in the end.

Not booked our summer holiday yet, thinking of going away as soon as DD is finished in July so we can be around in mid August for results - eeeek!

Lovely to hear about all the holiday plans.

Glad you got a cuddle StColombo

Sorry about the operation needed MrsAvocet

Back to school tomorrow here though DD is still full of the joys of spring. No mocks until Feb. Was out for a meal with her boyfriends parents, seems like a nice boy, he always drives her home then asks to see our Maine Coon cat before leaving. Apparently he is desperate for one but his Mum said no. Floof is cute, I woke up to find myself sharing my pillow with 1.2 metres of fluff. Lovely Christmas break, quiet but prefer it that way.

Even English unis start mid September, so not much time after school hols end! Such an uncertain year.

No family holidays planned here either @IThinkIMadeItWorse @MrsAvocet, just a long weekend with friends for DH's big birthday in the summer and DD is going on a girls' holiday straight after the exams. When I asked how she felt about a family holiday she said she wasn't sure yet. Will probably book another long weekend for us all at some point, but DD's likely uni destinations all require at least one overnight stay so there'll be inbuilt mini breaks whatever happens.

@Silkierabbit Similar story here, much of new year was spent with DD's boyfriend and our cat gazing adoringly at each other! We feel this is a definite point in his favour!

Happy New Year all! Think this will be an eventful one for lots of our families.

Thinking about holidays here too. DD has been planning a post A Level holiday with her 3 closest friends for about a year. After a huge amount of discussion and lots of compromises to suit everyone, they were on the verge of booking it when one friend suddenly decided she didn't want to come after all. And another friend has now said she's not sure if she wants to come either if it's not going to be all 4 of them. DD was beyond annoyed but has since calmed down and realised that actually if it's just her and remaining friend it will still be fine and may even be better as she and friend are more attuned with what they want to do, so they can makes plans for things the others didn't want to.

I suspect this is all part of her realising how things will change soon - her best friend is travelling over most of the summer and then having a gap year in Australia- they normally spend a ton of time together so she's already thinking about how this will be a huge wrench and leave a hole in her life.

We were also looking at booking a September holiday, but I've come to the realisation that it will have to be the first week due to worry about clashes with Freshers' week. Though I am secretly pleased that DD still wants to come away with us!

dd has mocks starting next week for 2 weeks. She hasn't submitted UCAS form yet because she doesn't know what she wants to apply for (though there are a few unis that are preferred for sports reasons, which are good choices for lots of things, so that's a help). She's been open to a gap year (and/or deferred applications), but over Christmas has mentioned a few times about going off to uni in Sep...

Can't bring it up until mocks are over then just a week and a bit to submit... so we'll see and support. I favour applying for a range of things at 2 unis, going to offer holder and deciding later - can always pull out.

First mock done by ds this morning. Physics. "Could have been worse" apparently.

He has his driving test next week too so he needs to do a bit more practice this weekend.

Happy New Year to everyone!

Particularly to those young people with mocks now/imminently.

DD has spent this week working on her English NEA (nearly completed the first draft) and her geography one. She really needs to clear the decks to focus on revision for the 'mock mocks' in two weeks which will build towards the final set in late February.

It's all go, isn't it?

Summer hols decision-making is currently on hold. I paid for DS's post-A Levels holiday but unlike DD, he didn't also do an end-of-Yr-12 one (to which I did give DD £500). So a bit conflicted about whether to contribute to another one. Trying to be fair to both of them.

@theinnergame she can only write one personal statement that needs to focus on be subject area.
Also, does her school/college not have a deadline? They need time to add reference and predicted grades. She should check asap on that.
I do advocate a gap year (depending on subject, but it doesn't seem like your child is thinking of Math or a subject that unis do not like a gap year) and applying with grades in hand - much less stressful. But also important to have a plan for that gap year!

@mondaytosunday yup, all answers to those questions are known (school deadline is week after next and they are not slack) and while you are correct about one ps, you can send an additional one direct to any outliers, not through ucas. I've also checked through with her all the wp and parent questions.

We have moved on since I wrote - it may not have been clear but I meant I couldn't raise it with her, I needed to wait for her to be ready to talk and she has done now. She is on the case, application complete just to finalise which courses and finalise the ps.

Thank goodness this is our last one! Will be glad when the button is pressed.

Happy New Year everyone.

DS was back at school on Wednesday. With illness & working a lot at the restaurant & Christmas festivities & partying, very little schoolwork was done during the Christmas break. He seems enthusiastic but will have a tough month with his History NEA to complete this weekend & then studying for mocks which start on 15 January. School are giving all students two weeks study leave & there is a formal results day in February.

I'm freaked out that this is his last term with lessons!

We haven't made any family holiday plans yet, but DH & I are planning a trip around Portugal & Spain by train in October. DS is hoping to go to Benidorm with friends straight after exams & has saved for it, but his friends are less organised & so nothing has been booked yet - we will work our family holiday around his dates.

DS seems to have really matured over the last month or so, partly I think due to spending more time at work with slightly older colleagues than with the mates, who are nice lads but are not ambitious. DH & I see this as a good development for DS, who I know has felt uncomfortable or self-conscious being one of the few in the old primary school friendship group looking at university. He's had some great encouragement from colleagues who are either at or recently graduated from university.

DS is still waiting to hear from Durham & Kings College London but in the meantime is looking at offer-holder days. Do parents go to these too? I'm happy to but don't want to cramp DS's style if that's not usual.

Good luck to those still waiting to submit applications or hear back.

Well I've just booked hotels to go to 2 offer holder days with DS in the next month so I jolly well hope it's ok @legosnowqueen 😂 😂
We all went to my older son's offer holder days actually, though there hadn't been any ordinary open days due to covid so I don't know if it was any different to normal at that time. There were some talks specifically for parents, some for just the prospective students and some for both at the ones we went to. I would say that the vast majority of applicants had at least one parent with them so I'm sure it's fine.

Happy new year all!

Good luck to DC with mocks coming up.

DS now waiting on Oxford and UCL. Seemingly he hasn't made the first cut for UCL offers for history as I can see on this thread that some have already gone out, but he does have lower than average GCSE grades for his A Level predictions so that might be the issue. He hasn't been rejected either so that's a good sign.

If , as we expect, he doesn't get an Oxford offer (he felt his interview went badly), the wait will not be over. I just hope UCL don't keep him hanging too long. He has an offer from KCL already which I think has an excellent history course, but he just marginally would prefer UCL.

Fingers crossed for all the other DC waiting.

I have mixed feelings about how quickly the A Levels have gone given my son's background he has aced 6th form. I'm definitely ready for him to take the next steps to independence though, probably because I had him at home so long as he didn't attend high school!

Getting close to the Oxford result on Tuesday and a bit nail biting now. Especially I always like a worst case plan and DD is still adamant she can't start deciding that or the other 2 places to apply to until after the Oxford result. So still at 3 places applied to and all awaiting news. Her school still have to fill in the Bristol form as her tutor is on long-term sick leave.

Asked her about Imperial Economics, Finance and Data Science and got a no to that especially to Data Science. The finance part got a I'm happy to work in finance but don't want it as part of my degree but I think she could reconsider that as its useful and may help with the no FM A level. Still talking about a year out if Oxford and LSE reject and at 5% offers each that might well happen and seems happy with a year out and has a good well paid job but still needs a viable uni plan. Though I want it to be something she really wants to do and somewhere she really wants to go and currently she only feels that way about Oxford and LSE. It might help if she would view more universities, she's currently just be to Oxford though she's been to lots of UK cities and knows people at various unis.

She has told me I need to get a Mrs Floof so that's its a celebration cat if she gets in and will comfort her if she doesn't and apparently they have to have babies and we need to keep 2. I asked her how this ends and she said with about 80 cats. 😎

My DD thinks the cat plan is an excellent one 😃

Ha @Silkierabbit my DD would approve (though our Maine Coons are neutered and are related anyway so 😬). She's still fantasising how she can smuggle one of them in her suitcase!
I fully get where your DD is coming from - DD waiting on Cambridge and can't think beyond that right now. If no she will then look at Durham colleges and start getting anxious about Bath (yet to hear from). It will be one or the other so fifth UCAS spot will not be filled (she has an offer from Glasgow but while she likes the course on reflection too far away and four years seals it's fate).

@mondaytosunday - we've not heard from Bath either. It's the only one we've had nothing from! I'm hoping it's soon.